OPINION: Republicans in California – The perpetual race for second place

An argument in favor of Travis Allen for Governor

By Brenda Higgins

This commentary originally appeared on OCPolitical.com on June 2, 2018. Republished at the author’s request.

Travis Allen

Polls are not hard to understand. The science of polling, even with the basic college level understanding of how the math behind it works, is also easily understood to be not just subjective, but fully within the manipulation of the pollster.

It doesn’t take a scientific poll to see and comprehend what has happened in elections in the U.S. and around the world in the past three U.S. election cycles. People with a real power to vote, have done so. And, they have done so in outright rebellion to those in power who have told them what to do and how to vote. In spite of the effort of this ruling class of politicians and pollsters and pundits, people have rejected their group-think advisements to vote as they are being told to vote, and they are voting, with a level of enthusiasm and fervor, that we have not seen in our lifetime.

People have, in massive numbers, rejected what they have been told, and voted for candidates that experts said could not win. My opinion is based upon my own very unscientific polling. I knocked on people’s doors and talked to them about things like health insurance and abortion. I called them on the phone and talked to them about unions and school bonds. I knocked on their doors to remind them to vote or show up to their caucus. I have done this many thousands of times in the past few election cycles.

They want to talk about things that aren’t in the polls. In 2014 in Arkansas, people expressed angry reflexive passion to vote for any candidate with an “R” by their name. In 2015 there was fury over more special elections and efforts to create more special taxes to fix things they thought were already paying taxes for. In Nevada in 2016 they only wanted to talk about Donald Trump or Bernie Sanders and had no interest in hearing anything else. In 2018, as I talk to people on phones and at their front door, about the down-ticket, they want to talk about Travis Allen.

The politicians and pollsters and pundits, have told people in the past three election cycles that whatever they are feeling or thinking as an individual, sitting in their living room in front of their TV or behind their computer screen, the way that they should think because a lot of people think that way, and this is who you should vote for because all the other people are going to vote that way. The American public has rejected that instruction out of hand and have become inherently distrustful of the media and of ‘establishment’ politicians. Funny thing it, the media is now telling them that this has happened because of Donald Trump. The media misses it again. The rebellion is not ‘because’ of Donald Trump. Donald Trump is because of the rebellion.

So, it is in 2018, California.

Here’s a poll. How many Democrat governors have we had in California since 1959? That is more than a half century. Think about that, because in the past three election cycles, Democrats, Republicans, pollsters and media pundits, continue to tell Californians that they can only have a Democrat governor.

In the past 59 years, we have had three Democrat Governors. Brown, Brown, Davis, and Brown again. Three. And one, Grey Davis, was kicked out of office by the rulers of California, the California people. In the same time period, we have had four Republicans, Schwarzenegger, Wilson, Deukmejian, and Reagan.

Reagan’s two terms were after the two terms of Edmund G. Brown. and before two terms of his son, Jerry Brown. Jerry Brown had ANOTHER two terms, after Schwartzenegger ousted Grey Davis. The last time we had a one term Governor was Culbert Olson in 1938. He was a Democrat. Before Culbert Olson, sequential Republicans held the office for nearly 50 years. You have to look back to 1894 to find another Democrat Governor. My point is, there is not a long or strong history of support for Democrat Governors in this state, and in the last three election cycles, voters in every other state have rejected Democrat governors by wide margins. Republicans are Governors in 33 states. In 32 states, Republicans control BOTH houses of the legislature. In 2010, Republicans controlled ONLY FOURTEEN STATES. 14, in 2010.

The tide has changed, and California citizens are missing the benefit of conservative ideals.

In the past three election cycles, the pollsters and pundits and party leaders (in both parties actually) are telling the voting public to sit down and be quiet, that there may never be a republican Governor in California again. In keeping with their pearl clutching and hand wringing, over their polls, and research and infinite wisdom, they have given us, Meg Whitman and Neel Kashkari in the past two races for Governor. There was a bizarre victory lap when Neal Kashkari lost by less than expected in 2014. These two were barely Republicans, they were wealthy people who spent their own money and the party rejoiced in that. Kashkari, who had never held public office and supported Obama in 2008, was outspent by something like 10 to 1, so he got more votes per dollar than Meg Whitman. The party leaders bizarrely counted in a victory and called on Tim Donnelly to step down because (by default) Kashkari was the party ‘standard bearer’.

Now we have another non-Californian, rich guy, and they are asking the voters to do the same. Take one for the team, vote this way because we are telling you that everyone else is going to vote this way, and we need to have a candidate at the “top of the ticket”.

Gone is any language about reclaiming the governor’s mansion at any time in the future, the strategy is simply to get someone bland enough, lack luster enough in policies, and rich enough to pay for some TV commercials, but not to win.

There is no strategy to re-take the governor’s mansion or find and promote a conservative candidate for governor in California.

Donald Trump did not have a path to 270. There is a scientific poll. The historic fact however, is that he far exceeded that necessary 270.

In 59 years, a member of the Brown family has held the governor’s office for 24 years, six terms. There are no more members of the Brown dynasty, but the professionals are telling us that it is time for the Newsom/Pelosi dynasty to be coronated. There is nothing you can do about it, we have given you this proper second place finisher, please just sit down and let us tell you how to vote. Ruling, establishment, elitism, but in their tone deafness, they miss, that THIS is precisely what the rebellion has been aimed at.

Remember, this is what they told us about Hillary. It was her turn. She had the money, the experience, she was the most “qualified” and that Donald Trump was a joke. The coronation of the next ruling member of the Clinton dynasty had arrived. Sit down Peasants. The pollsters always leave out one thing.

The ruling class are not rulers, and the people are still in charge, and their not buying this.

Cox is a big government advocate still. No matter what he tries to do to distance himself from his own ideas. His only voting record, is his vote for Pro-Choice, Open Borders, Libertarian, Gary Johnson. Cox has never won a race. That makes him a perfect choice for the second place strategy.

Travis Allen has never lost a race, and was never expected to be in office. The pollsters, pundits and ruling class have counted him out, and told him to sit down and wait his turn for the entirety of his political career.

Historically, it is time for the Governor’s Mansion to be turned back to the Republicans. Someone needs to tell the leadership of the Republican party, they dont know it yet. There is no justification for rolling over and paying dead with a second-place candidate. Californians, just like Americans across the country in the past three elections, have risen up to remind you, who is in charge, and they seem to be pretty tired of Second Place.

Higgins practiced family law for 17 years prior to becoming a pro-life activist. She is currently the Executive Director of Stanton Healthcare SoCal, a non-profit medical center for women who’s mission is to replace Planned Parenthood with life affirming medical care. She writes for both OCPolitical and The127Activist.

Editor’s Note: Opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Herald, or it’s publisher and editor.